Friday, April 30, 2010

the latest post on our ”ghostblog”, www.artoflivingfreefree.blogspot.com, was suddently edited recently, omitting the following RS quotes. In the interest of objectivity and fairness, we have decided to re-publish them. Really I find that they speak for themselves, and I fully understand why they were suddently deleted. This is the original Free Free post:

Tuesday, April 27, 2010
A Favor

I got a chance to talk to Sri Sri Ravi Shankar today. I mentioned to him that i had started this blog, basically to counter the stuff that some of those bilious minds seem to come up with about him. I told him how it could affect many people's opinions about Art of Living and him adversely, and what he said left me quite speechless.

He said, Oh let them write whatever they wish. As much bad things they want to write they are welcome to write. it's good.

Seeing the quizzical expression on my face, he smiled and continued. If there are any people who believe this and are going away, then they are weak minded people. People who want to deny the overwhelming evidence that is staring at them in their face, or who doubt their own experience and listen to some bunch of people criticizing us are being filtered away from us. and that is good!

We will be able to find out who is intelligent and who is strong. We should thank them. They are doing us a big favor.

What a different way of looking at things.

Later, I asked some others why Art of Living had not put up any official counters to this disgusting (at least to me, most of them seemed not to be bothered about it), they said in different ways, we are too busy.

Very few were concerned about it, but when i told them what Guruji had said to me earlier, they all brightened up and encouraged me to write more on this blog. Some of them even said they wanted to contribute.

One of them told me about an interview that Sri Sri had given sometime ago. He had been asked, Guruji can you predict the future? With a smile He had replied, wise men don't predict the future, they make it!

This volunteer told me i have much to do, to make the future, can't be bothered by Guruholic and co.

I asked another, what about Satyameva Jayate? That truth should prevail.
She smiled and said, in time, truth will always prevail.

J

OK, J, since you are an ardent reader of this blog, please answer the following questions (i will submit this post on the free free blog also, as a comment, just to make sure you read it). If you are left speechless, as seems to happen to you quite often, you may bring the questions to your Master, for him to answer.

”If there are any people who believe this and are going away, then they are weak minded people. People who want to deny the overwhelming evidence that is staring at them in their face, or who doubt their own experience and listen to some bunch of people criticizing us are being filtered away from us. And that is good! We will be able to find out who is intelligent and who is strong.”

Please show me the overwhelming evidence, staring me right in my face. Really, I am not being sarcastic! Finally RS comes to the level of sound arguments and reason, instead of asking everyone to simply have faith. I will be most happy to study any evidence you may submit, arguing the claims that

RS is an enlightened being, with no self-interest

has the power to know people's past and future, as he claims (uups, then why does he need this blog ”to find out who is intelligent and strong”?)

has heightened awareness/supernatural powers, thus being able to predict/manifest the future

has any other siddhis or powers, like for instance these guys, who miraculously levitate (It's true, they actually fly through the air, watch the video! My rationalist point of view was shaken watching it... or not!)

....Oh, I could go on, but what is the point?

Okay, please explain to me then, why RS wants to ”filter away” the ”weak minded”. Isn't the whole point of a guru to help the weak get stronger? Or could it be that what RS really intends is to filter away the strong minded, those who dare question and think for themselves? Does he feel threatened, maybe? It reminds me of a quote from one of Nick's posts:

"Joel Kramer describes in his book "The Guru Papers: Masks of Authoritarian Power" how cult leaders often show great love, compassion and tolerance, as long as their growing needs for personal ego gratification are met. As soon as the cult's popularity and growth starts to diminish, the cult leader will often react by weeding out the weak of faith, and strenghening his grip on the remaining members." (Nick)

Maybe the weak of faith are the strong of mind, intelligence and integrity?

”People (...) who doubt their own experience and listen to some bunch of people criticizing us are being filtered away from us. And that is good!

J, listen up: we are the ones who stopped doubting our own experience. That is why we left. We write now to the people with secret doubts, the ones who are in pain and who need a way out. When we share our pain and insight, our experiences in and our liberation from the cult and its leader, these people gain hope and inspiration. If you are happy in AOL, fine. If ever you should feel that nagging doubt about the integrity of your Master, you will probably find -like we did- that nowhere in the organisation are you allowed to openly express those doubts. Yes, you may criticize the organisation -it has become quite the fashion amongst senior teachers, to openly do that, as if they feel the need to demonstrate that the organisation is open and transparent enough to allow this. But who criticizes or questions the guru? Once you start doing that, you are weeded out.

Is doubt really just lack of prana? Or are doubts your own good judgement desperately trying to be heard, through the AOL mind conditioning? If doubt is lack of prana, how come so many people in the prana-enriched AOL community are having secret doubts? RS, if you are really only interested in the strong of faith, why do you threaten your remaining teachers, telling them "they will be eaten up by their own minds" if they leave AOL? Don't you know that fear makes you weaker, not stronger? Or is it all really about (your) power and (your) control, rather than about empowering and freeing people?

33 comments:

Jeffrey
said...

ArtOfLivingFreeFree has already lost its credibility. It is proven to be just another controlled campaign vehicle.After all the edits that were forced on his original post, he/she may well start ArtOfLeavingFreeFreeFree blog and finally be free of all the forced edits.

‘J’ seems has really mucked it up & his blunders have done more damage than doing any “damage control”!!

So “J” which version of your 2nd post is true? did you “I got a chance to talk to Sri Sri Ravi Shankar today.”OR: did you “I heard him say “ “Some time back, in answer to a question about some people ..."?So first you said you talked to him on 27th, then you withdrew that & you said you heard him say sometime back?So did you lie the first time about seeing him? Did you just make it up?If so, you are telling us that you are a liar & your entries are full of made up stories. Not a very nice start to your blog, is it?

Or if you truly talked to SriSri, why did you have to withdraw it & instead say “sometime back you heard him say”? Who told you to change your story & why?Why did you withdraw this:"I mentioned to him that i had started this blog, basically to counter the stuff that some of those bilious minds seem to come up with about him. I told him how it could affect many people's opinions about Art of Living and him adversely, and what he said left me quite speechless.” ?

So which one is it, did you see him & talked to him personally or didn’t you?Why in first version you said:“He said, Oh let them write whatever they wish. As much bad things they want to write they are welcome to write. it's good.Seeing the quizzical expression on my face, he smiled and continued. If there are any people who believe this and are going away, then they are weak minded people. People who want to deny the overwhelming evidence that is staring at them in their face, or who doubt their own experience and listen to some bunch of people criticizing us are being filtered away from us. and that is good!We will be able to find out who is intelligent and who is strong. We should thank them. They are doing us a big favor.”

And then you totally withdrew the above in your 2nd & 3rd Version. Did RS tell you the above or did you make that one up too?

If he really told you the above why did you withdraw it in your 2nd & 3rd version? Who told you to withdraw it & why? What is the point of you continuing with your blog if you can’t quote what SriSri really told you ? What credibility is left for you when you had to change your post three times to please your boss? or was it your boss mucking it up three times himself? Doesn't say much for his or your intelligence, does it?!

And if he didn’t tell you the above & you made it all up, then “J” you have now really told the whole world that you are a pathological liar. Believe me no point of you trying to help SriSri, you are doing more damage than any damage control.

In either case , you have already given the show away, all on your own, and only on your 2nd post!!

Dear "J", further to my previous comment,even though you did a major surgery to your first version & you took out all that SriSri told you personally , you forgot to take this piece out too:“... but when i told them what Guruji had said to me earlier.”It no longer makes sense to have that in your 3rd version. You forgot that in 3rd version SriSri didn’t tell you anything!!!

I shouldn’t be so harsh & find all these faults in your “3-version” post. Let me praise you for one thing at least. You correctly changed from "Later, I asked some others" to "Later I had asked some others". Well done!!

In your 3rd version you changed SriSri’s direct quote to look like it was your interpretation of what he said:“In effect what he was saying is that those people who are saying or writing negative about Art of Living are doing a favor!”

A favor to who? To SriSri or to his innocent victims?

And "J" don't let all these criticism put you off. Remember DSN? Please do carry on. You are providing us much insight to RS & his PR's mentality. Not to mention so much free entertainment.PS. I have posted all three versions of "J" s post under comments section of KLIM's post"Sri Sri, Free Free, Fraud Fraud, LOL LOL"

Reasoning has always won and will continue to ultimately win. the history is testimony to that. Evidence based facts and truths have a longer innings n life. Don't worry AOL will die its own death. Its a matter of time.

If his discourses are dissected word by word and inferred you get a para normal truth.I wonder why nobody stands and counter/questions him. Why his weired quotes are countered then n there?Why life actually is something else n what he projects is distorted picture? Every problem has different causes n solutions. How one/limited solution can 'cure' all problems.

Just yesterday when I clicked on ArtOfLivingFreeFree link I read their post about SSRS's reaction to this blog. And today already it's been censored...cleverly censored not make the mistake of actually quoting SSRS's words and getting into trouble. It surely reflects a highly controlled AOL organization, or an uncredible person writing that blog. AOL has certainly gone down to ruins, has no sature as a spiritual organization.

Let's stick to our message and let them react and start their campaigns to counter. Reacting is a sign of weakness. Our strength is in our truth, innocence and purity. We write from our hearts. Truth doesn't need to defend itself or react.There are so many out there who are still waiting to write and read. It is such a relief to be able to do so in a secure, anonymous way. The teachers are such hypocrites, enlightened face in public (the sugar) and the nasty, arrogant, ambitious - the very opposite of spirituality - in private (the poison). I have actually seen nice people become bad because of the Art of Living community. Have you been to a teachers meeting! Hahaha!!! the participants should go and see how calm these teachers are. After much thought, I have realized that the teachers have become exactly like their master, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. I can relate with all those things written in this blog by others. It convinces me that I am not the only unfortunate doubting one. I was stuck in the compulsion to do do do more more more, competition with others to please the Guru to prove your worth. I was going far from my search for Truth, search for my Self, what about the sincere seeking? Now I feel so free, so relived, thanks to this blog, I'm back to my spiritual quest.AoL, this blog, my life, is part of a bigger story, the big picture, and also so small in the bigger scheme of things.

well now the blog has disappeared all together...let's move on.i'm sure there's another campaign going on to counter this blog.it's far too "negative" for them - negative is a relative terms. It is the first time in history that so many have criticized SSRS. He's a very insecure leader and can't hear any criticism, he has surrounded himself with "yes" people.If any Sr. AoL people are reading this I would like to advise you to have your own private opinion and not to loose your common sense, tell you that where there is smoke there is fire. Do you really think so many people can be wrong? Have you never had doubts about the money, about the egos and the feverishness. About the Guru himself? For once see him as human and don't give your soul away...Yes nothing is completely wrong or completely right. SSRS has given so many great commentaries, knowledge, techniques. But the balance tilts if there are illegalities, misconducts, scam and fraud, no? Hope you all in AoL will keep your minds open...

There are many processes which are done, quite like the sharing and discussions during the advanced and DSN courses, many different meditations, some common with the advanced course, and some knowledge sharing by the teacher.

There are several in-depth group sessions, but I won't go into the details here. There are some other new processes aided by volunteers, which you won't see in other programs.

There's really nothing in the way of new techniques or meditations you are supposed to do at home, except for one procedure where they teach you how exactly to bless someone.

Does it work? Many people say it does. For me, it did not. That's why I quit everything except for the basic 15-minute kriya which I feel still benefits my health (you'll probably get the same health benefits through any other proper pranayam or yoga process).

Here are some questions only for people involved in AOL. I qualify this because there are people on this blog that actually comment on SSRS and AOL with absolutely no experience with it! A little strange indeed.

1) Are all of you saying that you gained nothing of value from your time in AOL and contact with SSRS?

2)Why do all of you seemingly obsess over SSRS's alleged siddhis? I've never heard a single teacher talk about them as some sort of selling point for AOL nor have I ever heard SSRS talk about them.

3) Did any of you actually have good experiences with AOL techniques (SK, Sahaj Samadhi Meditation, etc.)?

4) If you don't like AOL and SSRS why are you obsessively talking about it? What are you trying to resolve? I think you're trying to resolve something but you're not sure what it is. Simply trashing something or someone rarely works.

1) Are all of you saying that you gained nothing of value from your time in AOL and contact with SSRS?

They obviously gained many things, or else why would they spend so much time with AOL?

2)Why do all of you seemingly obsess over SSRS's alleged siddhis? I've never heard a single teacher talk about them as some sort of selling point for AOL nor have I ever heard SSRS talk about them.

They are just silly. No-one actually talks of siddhis except during advanced level courses, like TTC etc. They just want a point to trash AOL thats why they use it.

3) Did any of you actually have good experiences with AOL techniques (SK, Sahaj Samadhi Meditation, etc.)?

Yes they had. Thats why they went on to become teachers. Now they have some issues with AOL. They cant explain their behavior, where, they liked it first and then are not liking it.So they come up with theories like AOL is cult and that they were innocent victims who were trapped. Such pathetic arguments from weak minds.

4) If you don't like AOL and SSRS why are you obsessively talking about it? What are you trying to resolve? I think you're trying to resolve something but you're not sure what it is. Simply trashing something or someone rarely works.

Because they have nothing else to do. Before joining AOL they had nothing to do, after having left AOL they have nothing to do. So how to spend time? Hence talking trash online, trying to damage other people's name and achievements.

ANON - May 2, 2010 12:29 AMI am with AOL for more than 10 years. Last year, I have myself seen and heard SSRS saying that even if there is less food he can make it sufficient for more people (aka Jesus). Ironically, on the very next day I saw him distributing sweets and due to less number of sweets he could not distribute to all. At the end he simply left the box of sweets on the table for others to eat, fully knowing that there were many people who won't be able to share.

It was funny to observe all this within a span of 24 hours, esp. his expression when told that there are no more sweets.

Dont waste your time with the Blessings Course - it is the biggest scam, a combination of techniques from the various courses packaged into one. The course fee is much higher,in the earlier days the Blessings course was taught free.

The requirements and duration have been reduced considerably, it used to be a 6day program, now its only three days.Everyone who attends the program becomes a blesser irrespective of whether they are terminally ill or mentally off.

In the six day program that I attended years ago, a day and half was spent looking out of the window and admiring nature, like in the Advance course some years ago, participants sat for 2 days looking at a mirror.

You wont get any blessings attending the blessing course,so save your money for something else instead of contributing to the already overflowing coffers of SSRS.

Anonymous @ 12:29 am and yourdad:Do you guys really think this is going to fly? I mean, do you seriously believe that the readers of this blog are so naïve that an attempt as pathetic as this is enough to undermine it? Guys, this is not AoL anymore. A simple brush off of an issue by the guru or a senior operative is not enough. Let me address your questions, anonymous, as well as the oh-so-typical yet utterly flat commentaries by yourdad.

Anonymous @ 12:29: “1) Are all of you saying that you gained nothing of value from your time in AOL and contact with SSRS?”

Of course I did! Even time completely wasted can be the basis of a potentially invaluable lesson. The most wonderful lesson I scraped out from my time with AoL is that I should never again yield my free will to anyone and that I should not let ultimately narcissistic persons manipulate me by appealing to my most intimate idealistic concerns. Besides that, my involvement with AoL led me to explore various traditions in spirituality (against the explicit direction from TTC to not do so, mind you!) and helped me find true teachers such as Ramana Maharshi. So, yes, ultimately it led to very rewarding things of lasting value. That’s why they say that when a devotee is sincere, even a fake guru will do.yourdad: “They obviously gained many things, or else why would they spend so much time with AOL?”A graduate of the Sri Sri school of oversimplification, I see. You are right, actually, I pointed above. I did gain invaluable lessons from my association with the cult. But you are not correct that I spent so much time (6 years in my case) because I was gaining so much. The time was spent because I let my idealism overcome my discrimination and was willing to justify all the fishy things I was encountering. Following your ultimate idealistic concerns is gratifying in its own right and that drives you through walls of doubt for a period of time, but it is ultimately unsustainable when the reality of what AoL represents is consistently inconsistent with them. Truth ultimately prevails and we leave.

(cont.)Anonymous @ 12:29: “3) Did any of you actually have good experiences with AOL techniques (SK, Sahaj Samadhi Meditation, etc.)?”

My answer to your first question partially answers this. Beyond that, let me state that pleasant experiences and truth are two different things. The techniques mentioned are not themselves conducive to arriving at truth. Refer to Ramana Maharshi’s expositions of the nature of reality and you will see how far off the mark is most of what AoL people focus on.

yourdad: “Yes they had. Thats why they went on to become teachers. Now they have some issues with AOL. They cant explain their behavior, where, they liked it first and then are not liking it.So they come up with theories like AOL is cult and that they were innocent victims who were trapped. Such pathetic arguments from weak minds.”

I am perfectly able to explain and I already did. AoL appealed to my idealistic streak, my ultimate concerns. AoL managed to convince me initially that it was the right arena for me to act upon these concerns. It purposely targets those aspects of a human psyche. For many people these types of concerns are very important yet they don’t easily find ways to express them in modern society. AoL seems like the answer to this conundrum. Ultimately, it fails as such. That’s why people leave disappointed. In all honesty, I was never impressed by SK, it did nothing for me during my first basic course. The reason I went back was that most pure and intimate desires seemed to have found fertile soil for growth.

(cont.)Anonymous @ 12:29: “4) If you don't like AOL and SSRS why are you obsessively talking about it? What are you trying to resolve? I think you're trying to resolve something but you're not sure what it is. Simply trashing something or someone rarely works.”

I’m sorry but this is a disingenuous question. It seems to come from a desperate desire to be left alone and not criticized. KLIM has explained many times what he/she is trying to resolve and the purpose this blog serves towards that. Besides, it is only in AoL’s book of formulae that not bringing something up for discussion when you don’t like it is the correct thing to do. Coincidentally, following that rule in this case would seem to be in AoL’s best interest. It is not a convincing argument at all. Simply trashing is not what happens here, although some people may have a tendency to express their emotions in a more abrupt manner (just as AoL people do, by the way). Very necessary alternative to the party line points of view are expressed here. Sorry for the inconvenience this may cause AoL.

yourdad: “Because they have nothing else to do. Before joining AOL they had nothing to do, after having left AOL they have nothing to do. So how to spend time? Hence talking trash online, trying to damage other people's name and achievements.”Now what kind of response do you give a trite statement like that? What would Sri Sri do? Probably come up with something even more childish.

Dude you need a job. Why don't you just follow sri sri's orders and let us be.

The reason for creation of this blog is in the description. It is not here for mudslinging, rather to expose the real truth behind RS, so more people are not duped.

Even Nithyananda gave some useful techniques to people (just look at the wealth he amassed) - that does not excuse his behavior.

Finally, when people have nothing of substance to criticize, they resort to name calling. That is what you are doing. You have no other point, other than calling us losers for criticizing sri sri. If you had any real grounds, you would counter it with facts, not empty rhetoric.

It is interesting to read the Guruholic and Klim blogs that are set on maligining the AOL and Sri Sri without offering any proof for anything! Some of my viewpoints on all the baseless allegations that are put on their websites -

1. Question them! Please question them when they write things with no substantiating information - when, where, who? It's really wrong for them to write things that are baseless, and we should be aware to not believe anything that is in a written form. Don't believe things unless there's concrete proof for things - send them a note on their blogs questioning the authenticity and you will see they will not reply to you - I have tried that and they just don't have any answers to the baseless allegations they have put forth.

2. FinancialsAOLF is a registered charitable organization and all accounts are audited and reported to the government. If anyone says money is not accounted for, they can pretty much say it for any other nonprofit organization also. Please check the IRS website (in the US) if there are any questions. All the money is 100% accounted for! Believe the facts, not fiction from Klim and Guruholic blogs.

AOLF has only 15% of its revenue from donations and remaining from courses. Sri Sri donates 99% of all contributions that come to him as book royalty or direct donations, to the foundation! It is his greatness that he did not create a 'for profit' foundation like so many others have done in teaching yoga/meditation and spirituality.

3. Sri Sri's FamilyWhat Klim and the Guruholic blogs write about Sri Sri's family is truly disgraceful. They are being picked out only because of their family connections to Sri Sri. Bhanu is a tireless worker and is busy all the time in teaching or managing the service projects. It's natural for her students to give her gifts out of gratefulness, and even from that, she gives away most of them! Ajay, Sri Sri's nephew, is perhaps one of the most down-to-earth and simple person I have known. He has a job and is also pursuing a Ph.D. in the US and does not need any money from the foundation, and he does not take any.

Also, it's time for Klim and Guruholic to stop questioning how people live their lives - it's none of their business.

4. Life of Full Time AOL TeachersNothing is farther from truth from what Klim and Guruholic blogs mention about full-time AOL teachers. It's actually very difficult for someone to be a full timer, and extremely easy to get out of it (and become a part timer)! Hundreds of teachers go to Sri Sri every year asking if they can become full time teachers, and he tells them to continue with their job/business and teach when they can. Also, there have been instances when full time teachers have wanted to move to a job and serve part time, and Sri Sri encouraged them full heartedly - I myself know a few such teachers! From what Klim has written, looks like it's a case of one's own failure, very similar to what I see in my own business where employees complain about everything in life. I tell these people - stop complaining and find something else to do! It's time Klim and Guruholic accepted the fact that they themselves are responsible for their miseries and stop blaming the foundation for their failures.

Hope more people question the negativity being freely thrown around by Klim and Guruholic.

True BlogPlease note that there are others besides KLim who contributes to this blog. Many ex teachers, volunteers have shared their experiences in AOL. You mean to say that all these people are lying or fabricating stories.

I have donated lots of money to the school project and I have serious doubts whether these donations are actually used for the school. I have requested for the accounts innumerable times and to date have not received any response.

True BlogThe biggest joke of the century is about Bhanudidi working tirelessly. If working hard means: shopping the moment she lands in any country, getting upset when she is asked if the bag she carries is genuine or fake or indulging in spa treatments at the Ritz, then I totally agree with you that she is indeed a selfless hard worker.

A word of advice to you from a very old AOL person - open your eyes, ears and feel the under currents and you will know what AOL is all about.

About financials, just because AOL files annual regulatory revenue reports does not mean that all the money is accounted for. The main question is where does the money go and no one gives a reliable answers for that. Over the last 20 years, AOL must have earned 70 million dollars (my guess). Do you see evidence of even 35 million being spent on social projects?

It's just a big scam fleecing gullible innocent people. AOL is extremely good at marketing and using psychological manipulation to keep people hooked as long as possible.

@True Blog:Hope more people question the negativity being freely thrown around by Klim and Guruholic.

People do question Klim and Guruholic. Most people here are here because they question things in life in general and so they questioned AoL. Those people are welcome on this blog! I only came here because I had already encountered a lot of strange stuff in AoL like being continually hounded to take courses, people doing SK even though it actually harmed them, getting bizarre damage-control like letters when I dropped out explaining why AoL ISN't a cult (now, why would you need to send a letter like that unless a lot of people had expressed that very concern?), etc...

So I think most people on here already have a lot of their own stories to share about bad or uncomfortable experiences with AoL and have found this blog helps. Others may know there's something not quite right but don't have all the details. Many of the things I encountered are written about here!

Haha... I am really finding you guys out of your wits and holding on to things for which you yourself have no basis. I'll let you be, with just a few pointers from my end -

- Dr. Jones - please clarify whom you asked for accounts for the school project. Provide names, dates, how much money you donated. Without it, your statements are baseless.

- Dr. Jones again - please don't make things up about Bhanu. Looks like you have never gone shopping yourself or gone to a spa? Does that take away the goodness from someone!? I say Ha to you and pity your small mindnessness. I think your life is a joke if you think a spiritual person is not allowed to shop. :-)

- Krish - please stop gestimating, guessing and all those speculations. Don't make up numbers you have no idea about. It's so easy to throw facts out of the window and write anything from the comfort of your home. (How would you feel if someone writes wrong things about you in a blog and you know it's completely false?) Have you ever served on a service project in a rural area? If not, I will suggest you do that or go and see the tribal schools in the NE India or at many different states and then report your experience. Without that, your comments are baseless. Right?

- Jivani - it's a free world - just because someone encouraged you or someone to do a course does not imply you were dragged. If you did it, it's becuase you were convinced! With your logic, even coke and other products that bombard you with advertisements telling you to use them should fall in the same category, right? You have all the freedom not to use any product... if you did, you did from your awareness - don't blame the foundation for that. For one like you who did not like it, there are thousands who have benefitted. AOLF never claims to be perfect, but we have seen a very good result overall in people benefitting from the meditation and Yoga that are taught. These practices go back several thousands of years and if you say nothing works, well... maybe you should try something else. It's a free world!

You've started showing your true colors by using insulting tone (like a few others who seem to have recently arrived on this blog with a mission of discrediting this blog). You seem to be part of the new AOL damage control team. Your comments deserve no responses.

True Blog, I know who you are. Stop fronting for that Rasputin. None of the stats you quote about the service projects is true. $$Ravi just gives a few rupees to vulnerable schools and projects, wants his name there, pockets 95% of the donations and calls it AOL seva. How do I know this? I was part of the original AOL designers in the 90s in India. Plus, I'm a classmate of $$Ravi at National College, Bangalore. AOL should be renamed as the ART OF LEACHING foundation - they leach your health, wealth and life.

KLIM/Skywalker,I responeded to Trueblogs comment to me but it never got posted. 2nd time that's happened. Am I banned or what? I think it's just lost in cyberspace. Jivani

@True Blog,My experience is that I was pestered time and again to take courses. I can say no and believe me I'm very capable of saying no, but that wasn't my point. The point is that I don't understand why I was being pestered. Did they want my money? Were they trying to help me? I understand maybe they want to share their good experiences and I think that's great. But when you want to share something spiritual that badly, it's called fanatacism. It reminds me of Evangelical Christians. It gives yoga a bad name and it's tacky. Plus it made me distrustful---what do they want from me so badly?

There have been others who have shared about this on this blog and people in my community have told me they were really turned off by AoL for pestering them. One teacher went around an entire dept. trying to get everyone to do a course and talking about it to everyone all the time. To many scientists who are probably atheists at that. Finally, people got so angry, they told him about it and he stopped. Who wants to have yoga pushed on them?

And I don't call that "encouragement" as you say. I call it pestering and fanatacism or money hungry.

Personally, I would think AoL would want to listen to their potential customers rather than negating their experience or becoming defensive about it. After all, much of yoga today is big business.

@True Blog,My experience is that I was pestered time and again to take courses. I can say no and believe me I'm very capable of saying no, but that wasn't my point. The point is that I don't understand why I was being pestered. Did they want my money? Were they trying to help me? I understand maybe they want to share their good experiences and I think that's great. But when you want to share something spiritual that badly, it's called fanatacism. It reminds me of Evangelical Christians. It gives yoga a bad name and it's tacky. Plus it made me distrustful---what do they want from me so badly?

There have been others who have shared about this on this blog and people in my community have told me they were really turned off by AoL for pestering them. One teacher went around an entire dept. trying to get everyone to do a course and talking about it to everyone all the time. To many scientists who are probably atheists at that. Finally, people got so angry, they told him about it and he stopped. Who wants to have yoga pushed on them?

And I don't call that "encouragement" as you say. I call it pestering and fanatacism or money hungry.

Personally, I would think AoL would want to listen to their potential customers rather than negating their experience or becoming defensive about it. After all, much of yoga today is big business.

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This blog was created with the sole purpose of providing former Art of Living members and currently doubting ones a space for healing, finding answers, understanding processes that we went through as active members and as "drop-outs", sharing, supporting each other, with understanding, compassion, and above all, freedom and forgiveness. We welcome you to share your stories. Authors will be kept confidential unless you request your name be published.

Helpful Books

"Take Back your Life: Recovering from Cult and Abusive Relationships" by Janja Lalich

"The Guru Papers: Masks of Authoritarian Power" by Joel Kramer

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Opinions expressed in this blog are an expression of free speech and are protected as free speech. At no time is any content posted by the blog creator knowingly false. Opinions expressed in articles and files on this blog are those of the contributors and those opinions may not necessarily be shared by anyone involved in the creation of this blog. Events described in this blog are as accurate as memory and recollection permit. The experiences described in this blog is unique to the authors. You may have a more or less satisfying experience with the Art of Living Foundation or its related organizations.